Obituary of Joseph Mones Mateo, Jr

On Thursday, March 9, 2023, Joseph Mones Mateo, Jr. passed away at age seventy-four. Throughout his lifetime, he touched a lot of lives.

After immigrating from the Philippines, Joseph graduated from Seaside High School and attended Monterey Peninsula College. He, then, transferred and graduated from San Jose State University. After receiving his commission as an officer in the Air Force, his time in the security forces took him all over the world before he returned to California to teach R.O.T.C. at both San Francisco State University and Sacramento State University.

Achieving the rank of Major, he completed his Air Force career as a reservist while he worked as a civil servant for another two decades. When he retired to the Monterey Peninsula, his roots in the community deepened. He joined the Monterey Sunrise Rotary and a Toastmasters group. He became a docent at the San Carlos Cathedral in Monterey and volunteered at the International School of Monterey in Seaside where he taught enrichment classes and spent time in his grandsons' classrooms. Joseph took up ballroom dancing and learned to play the ukulele. An avid golfer, he enjoyed many afternoons on our local golf courses.

Joseph was best known for his megawatt smile and his boundless willingness to lend his time and talent to help others and the community. He is survived by his wife of fifty years, Ursula (Sally); their daughter and son-in-law, Camilla and Jacob Mann; and two grandsons, Riley and Dylaney Mann. A memorial mass will be held on Wednesday, March 22, 2023 at 11 a.m. at the St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Seaside. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that those who wish to do so make a donation in his name to a foundation supporting Parkinson’s research or any non-profit that is close to their hearts.